Advisors Asset Management Inc. Increases Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Key Points

• Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Hershey Company by 7.5%, now owning 33,344 shares valued at approximately $5.7 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their positions in Hershey during the 1st quarter, with 57.96% of the stock currently owned by hedge funds and other investors.
• Hershey reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.21, exceeding expectations, and plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $1.37 on September 15th.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,344 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,322 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Hershey were worth $5,703,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HSY. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hershey in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new stake in Hershey during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Hershey by 129.5% during the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fort Vancouver Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Hershey during the first quarter valued at $34,000. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HSY has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Hershey in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $187.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Hershey from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hershey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $135.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Hershey from $160.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $171.22.

Insider Activity

In other Hershey news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $240,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total transaction of $3,742,260.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 193,624 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 86,127 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,755. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Hershey Stock Up 0.2%

Hershey stock traded up $0.43 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $187.96. 915,603 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,794,147. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.53. Hershey Company has a 12 month low of $140.13 and a 12 month high of $208.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $179.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $171.40. The company has a market cap of $38.10 billion, a PE ratio of 24.96, a P/E/G ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.27.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.27 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hershey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.37 per share. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Hershey's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.78%.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery products and pantry items in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International. It offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products, including mints, chewing gums, and bubble gums; protein bars; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.